Not What I Had Expected
by Yuuki Rin Mazirif
Summary: I was supposed to just get over it and move on. But loosing my parents in Mission City two years ago still stung. It was even better when the military wouldn't tell me anything. They simply paid off my house and my bills, and INSISTED that I take their rusted out truck. Who knew it wasn't just a rusted out truck. Who knew that my life was not just about me?
1. More Questions Than Answers

Not What I Had Expected

 **Hello my Fanficee's? Is that even a word? Oh well, it is now. I know that I have another story in progress (Currently on hiatus). But… I don't like it. I am not sure why, I just think I am going to have to rewrite it. :/ So, I have been writing this little chapter the last few weeks and I like this one. SO, I THOGUHT I'D PUT IT UP! It came to me in a dream! I so love it when Transformers show up in my dreams!**

 **This little work in progress is set just before RoTF. This is also my first shot at an OC and Ironhide as guardian story. I have a respect for his sarcasm as well as his accent! If you don't want to read, you don't have to. I don't force anyone to!**

 **As always, I do not own anything about Transformers including characters, plot lines, etc. I also do not own any songs that pop up in here.**

 **I do own Kyrie! No takies!**

 **ALRIGHT! Here we go! Roll out!**

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Chapter One: More Questions Than Answers

"Hello?" my cell phone went to my ear, as I waited for a noise on the other end. The blasted thing had been ringing all afternoon and I had finally had enough of whoever it was. Probably some punk-ass prank caller trying to screw with me. Well it was not going to end well as it was eight o'clock at night and I had just gotten out of class for the day.

A quick glance at my phone showed the number was nowhere on the screen, just "Unidentified caller" What did that mean, an alien was calling? "Hello?" A shrieking sound came through, (Pringles! Was it one?) causing me to drop the iPhone under the passenger's seat of my Dark Green 1997 Chevy Silverado Z-71. "Shit!" after I regained my hearing, I rubbed my temple. Dumbass; Now, I had to find a phone, in the dark. I really needed to replace the bulb in the cab.

My truck seemed to eat everything, and 95 percent of the time, I could never find it. Sometimes I think the thing purposely kept the items lost. I had made a cute little orange crochet jellyfish to hang on the mirror, and the next morning, it was gone. I still can't understand how something hanging on a mirror could just loose itself. Pity, really. It was cute!

The noise from hell continued, muffled by the seat and partly because it had fallen on its screen. Couldn't it have landed up, so I could see the light? After digging around under the seat for what seemed like an hour, I found it, raising the mic part to my lips. "Go screw with someone else! My parents are in the military and will hunt your butt down!" the call ended on its own, a smirk pursing at my lips. "Good. Hope it scared you."

After the whole phone fiasco, my backpack landed gracefully in the passenger's seat, phone in the pocket, and I collapsed in the driver's seat. Today had been a rough day, with two critical presentations and a calculus II comprehensive final exam. At least college was over for the summer. I needed a break and a very long road trip to wherever I wanted to go. The truck's engine roared to life with a single click of the ignition. My foot went to the brake mindlessly as I shifted into drive. Thank goodness I had decided to back into my parking space when I arrived because I was too lazy to back it up when I had to leave. That and it was quicker to get into my truck because I didn't like being in a parking deck after dark. The quicker I could get out of here the better.

"Well, it's summer!" I let go of the wheel for a second, and I tried to hype myself up, but it didn't work. Instead, I put my hands back on the wheel and turned on the radio beginning to sing to a new rock song.

" _So here we are_

 _Fighting and trying to hide the scars_

 _I'll be home tonight_

 _Take a breath and softly say goodbye_

 _The lonely road_

 _The one that I, should try to walk alone_

 _I'll be home tonight_

 _Take a breath and softly say goodbye_ _."_

The cool May air kept me awake long enough to drive the twenty minutes home to my house in Marietta, Iowa. I was greeted by the warm white security light as I pulled up to the garage. The engine cut out and tired legs swung me out and onto the cement. After obtaining my backpack, I let myself in the front door, dropping the backpack near the front table.

"I'm home." but no one answered. No one ever answered. I was an only child and my mom and dad had seemingly gone 'missing' about a year and a half ago. They had been helping trainees at a military base in Mission City when the so called "military exercise gone wrong" happened. On the other hand, maybe it was a mechanical alien uprising, curtesy of our friends' phones, Photoshop and the internet. But how the heck would I know? All that mattered was they were "gone" and that the military wasn't even trying to find them. A part of me wished that they would just tell me they had died. I think believing they were still alive and had not even tried to contact me was harder to digest then knowing they were gone and in a better place.

Either way, I was lucky to be 17 at the time (now 19 as of April 13th) and granted the right to live on my own. That and the army had taken to paying off my house and bills for the next twenty years as an 'I'm sorry' package. They even helped me with getting a truck, even if it was well used from their missions and rusted to hell. I was just going to buy a small car and call it a day, but they INSISTED that I take the truck. Trying a little too hard to help, aren't you?

However, the rundown piece of metal had grown on me, and I wasn't sure why. It almost seemed to have an attitude of its own, save for the always displacing every decoration I tried to place in it.

So, I just walked upstairs to my room, passing some of the pictures of mom, dad and me. Their smiles were still too much for me to handle, even after a year and a half. I had wanted to take them down, but I just could find a reason to move them. Flicking on the light switch, my reflection was seen on the mirror of the back wall. My blonde hair was a mess from putting the windows all the way down, and small black circles were beginning to form under my apple green eyes. In short, I looked like crap. Even more reason to grab some PJ shorts with cats on them and a high school t-shirt and take a nice hot shower.

It was about nine-thirty when I made my way back downstairs. My stomach had begun to protest in the shower and I couldn't take the noise anymore. I had cut my shower time in half multitasking, and decided to let my hair dry on its own in favor of a four-cheese meatball hot pocket and a big ass glass of chocolate milk. If I got sick, so be it. I was celebrating the beginning of summer and the end of my sophomore year; I was going all out for to occasion.

With my teeth holding my hot pocket by a mere corner, I plopped onto the couch, remote in one hand, chocolate milk in the other. I was living the life. After an all-nighter of Netflix horror movies and a cheesy comedy (to break the tension from the horror, not that I was scared or anything) my body had settled into the couch too much…

0c0c0c0c0c0c0c0c

 _"What do you mean they're gone?" I spat, looking from a tall blonde-haired man to a gruff looking soldier with a scar over his left eye. Neither said anything as I tried to choke back the tears. "You know as well as I do that the news said everyone was accounted for! They can't be gone, you-you just didn't look hard enough."_

 _"Kyrie, look I don't have all the answers, and they didn't tell me anything either." My gut told me he was lying, but I let him finish his thoughts. "You think I am ok not knowing where my comrades are?" the blonde-haired person tried to keep a calm demeanor, but the man with the scar looked pissed. I hope it wasn't at me. "All I know is that I am to come get you and try to straighten things out with all of this. So, please try to calm down."_

 _"F-fine." I only agreed because scar-guy looked scary, and I didn't want any confrontation right now. The lies would have to wait until he was gone, because he scared the pee out of me. "Could I at least have your names? You're the first two people who have at least come over to me and tried to help."_

 _"Names Will Lennox, and big guy, we call him Ironhide." Lennox pointed to scar-guy, who only grunted in response. "Don't worry about him; he's not pissed at you. He's pissed LIKE you" For a second, Ironhide's blue eyes flashed sympathy at me, before filling back up with anger._

 _"Good to know…"_

 _0c0c0c0c0c0c0c0c_

The light began to make its way into my eyes, as my body rolled over to keep out of it. But I had forgot I had fallen asleep on the couch, and hit the hard wood floor with a thud. "Shit…"

Why had that memory resurfaced? Maybe it was because Lennox was the only person in the army who took care of me while everything with Mission City was being sorted out. He had even taken to staying with me, who was a good 27 hours away, until I had the courage to stay home by myself. But the part of that memory that sat in my stomach the worst was that man Ironhide. _"He's pissed LIKE you."_ But why? Those two had definitely known more then they let on, but when I tried to poke for answers, Ironhide stayed quiet, and Lennox changed the subject. After a year and a half, I was no closer to the truth than when I had first heard the news.

"Whatever. Kyrie, you need to let it go. If the military thinks it's better for me not to know, then it might be better to LET IT GO." But my own words sounded hollow. My arms pushed me up to standing position, as I stretched and headed to my room. A quick glance at the clock had said 5:09 p.m. Nothing like sleeping the morning and afternoon away; but hey, college was done for the summer. This was 'do what I want and get away with it time'. The mirror on my wall showed the same version of the girl from the night before, just with even messier hair. Tackling it with a hairbrush was easier then I would have thought, as a sudden ringing broke me from my trance.

My phone was all the way downstairs in my backpack, wasn't it… So I started my journey back downstairs to the hallway, where my mint green backpack with small white hearts and brown faux leather tassels sat on the table next to the front door. But something caught my eye from my front dining room window. My truck wasn't backed in when I got home last night, was it? I'd think I would remember where I had parked it. Whatever, maybe it was possessed or something. It ate everything and moved on its own. A shiver left my spine as I was still on edge with the horror movie marathon from last night. "Yeah, sure, that's all I need. A car with a mind of its own."

Digging through my backpack, I pulled out the gold-colored iPhone, swiping the screen. One missed call: Lennox. First, it was the dream that I couldn't shake, and now this. I had taken to not calling or texting him about a month ago, partly because I was busy with finals week coming up and because I still felt he was hiding something from me.

 _I should call him back. He never really did anything wrong. I was the one holding a year and a half grudge over something I wasn't even sure he did. Maybe he was just checking in on me…_

I decided against it. I wasn't ready to talk to him after how I had acted the last time I spoke with him. Petty, that's what I had been.

Instead, I put the phone in my PJ pocket, walking over to the television and pressing the 'on' button. The news had come on, with 'Breaking News' the top heading on the screen.

"For those of you just tuning in, a massive explosion over the Laurentian Abyss in the Atlantic Ocean has resulted in at least 60 deaths, with no survivors confirmed at this time. At about eight o'clock this morning, a sudden explosion of a United States Battleship rocked the seas, resulting in a total loss of the ship and its crew. It's said that the explosion was so large, the fires spread to nearby ships, causing them to catch fire and sink. The President had not given a formal speech to address if this was a terrorist attack or simply a military exercise gone wrong."

"Sure, an 'exercise gone wrong', like Mission City? How many of those soldier's families are going to be lied to like me?" the anger had resurfaced, as I slapped the remote control button to shut off the lies coming from the television. Tears began to brim at the edges of my eyes, as I took a sharp breath to try to steady myself. "There's something wrong with all of this! How long is the military going to cover this up before too many lives have been lost to keep on lying?"

All those families, waiting to hear the truth, only to be met with shallow lies with barely any details as to what truly happened moments before their loved one's died. This was all too much, as I sat on the couch crying for the first time since my parents were pronounced M.I.A. a year ago today. The tears came fast and in large volume, as I tried to catch my breath. But it just wasn't working…

"I need to take a drive, anywhere." I thought to myself, pulling up the GPS on my cell phone. My fit had subsided and I think I was out of tears. Maybe I should go to a water park. Most of them had opened with the warmer weather we have been having. It was about an hour and a half away, and I could manage to get a hotel room there for a few nights with the money I had made working at the university's bookstore. "I'll do that." I needed to get out of town, even if the water park was still Iowa.

So I began packing, grabbing the essentials. Bathing suit, towels, conditioner and shampoo (the hotel stuff was crap in a bottle and there was not enough for two washings when you had butt-length hair), a razor, shaving cream, three days' worth of shorts, tank tops, bras and underwear, a hair brush, face scrub, tooth paste and a tooth brush, deodorant, lotion, perfume and a few toiletries. I even brought some snacks in a separate bag, and I carried my bag and the snacks to my truck, that was now pulled in. "What the hell? If someone is screwing with me, so help me!" IT was totally backed in, but it was pulled in last night, but it was again back in- Aw shit! I don't have time for my brain to blow up on me right now. I'll pretend I was just pretending.

"Good afternoon Kyrie, where ya' headin'?" came my neighbor, Mrs. Knale. She was watering her flowers on her porch before she stopped to look at me.

"I just need to get out of the house, you know?" boy, wasn't that the truth. _Oh! Gas,_ I thought. _I will have to get that before I get on the highway._

"I understand." She sympathized, "I'll keep an eye on the house while you're gone. Just be safe." She pointed her watering can spout in my direction with a small smile. She had been acting like a mom to me since she learned of my parent's disappearance. I did not too much care for the attention, but I tried not to be rude about it.

"I will. Have a good day." I responded, climbing into the driver's seat and turning the key. The engine seemed to hesitate to kick over, but it did, as I only patted the dashboard. "I would be tired too if I went on an adventure without my knowing." Sure, it did, but thinking that my Silverado could just drive away on its own was a bit amusing. "But you don't do that, right?" I almost wanted it to answer back, but that would be just silly. A sentient truck, ha! Good one, Kyrie.

The gas station was packed for a Saturday afternoon, maybe it was because gas prices were steadily falling for once. I had to pull in behind a powder blue fiat. It was the only car without someone behind it, and the pump was sitting on the side my gas tank was. However, the scene was too priceless; my big ass truck sitting in line behind a small little rat-car. The owner of the Fiat looked at me with a small smirk, maybe he saw how ridicules the situation was, too. In addition, I swear saw a few cell phone camera's going off. If you're going to take that pic, I want one, too!

After putting about 35 bucks in my tank, I was beginning to merge onto the interstate, pulling into the farthest left lane. I was going to be on this road for a while and I didn't want to deal with merging and going around slower moving Semi-Trucks and cars. I set the cruise to 75 mph and turned on the radio cranking the volume up over the air-conditioning. Something about driving seemed to calm my mind, and taking this trip was what I needed: some r and r, millions of waterslides to tackle, and a new group of friends that would go on them with me!

But a nagging feeling was still there. Something about the newscast this morning had left me with fear. I wasn't sure why, as the accident was in the Atlantic, miles away from me. It just seemed to scream familiar. Maybe a bag of Cheetos's could soothe my uneasiness. I reached over into the bag in the passenger's seat, digging around until I found the crunchy treat. The bag had just been opened when red and blue lights made their way into my rear-view mirror. Mortified, I pulled over to the right berm.

 _Shit. Had I been swerving when I was digging through the bag, or maybe it was the fact that I was going down a hill. Maybe I was over the speed limit a bit too much?_ No, I had been going 76 and I kept my wheel straight, regardless of the snooping in my bag. Whatever it was, he pulled ME over. I turned off the radio, air and the engine. I put the window down and left my hands on the steering wheel. Great, I was about forty-five minutes into my trip and had already managed to be detoured.

The cop car pulled behind me, stopping INCHES from my back bumper. Weren't they supposed to stay back for their safety? Even if he ran the plate, he would have seen I was a teenager and kept back just in case. But this guy was right there. I took a minute to look in my mirror once more. The car wasn't a model that the police usually used. This one was a jet-black Mustang with the numbers 643 on the hood. However, it did stay Police. Maybe the State Highway Patrol decided to start using Mustangs instead of Chargers?

After about a minute, the Mustang's engine roared to life, smashing into my back bumper. The truck skidded forward about three feet, as I flew into the steering wheel, trying to catch my breath. I yanked myself back into my seat, trying to collect my thoughts. But my head was reeling from the impact. Did that cop just ram into me? My head spun around, as the car was backing up. _Son of a-_ Another smash sounded and the truck skidded forward again, as I tried to keep the wheels on the road and my chest out of the wheel. At first, I thought he'd hit the accelerator by mistake instead of the brake, but after the second time, it was apparent he was trying to HIT me.

My hands went to my seatbelt, as I tried desperately to unbuckle it. There was no way I was going to outrun a car about ten to fifteen years newer and faster than my truck. Maybe I could tuck and roll into the side of the ditch? Then where was I going to go? I had yet to figure that out. Who prepares for an insane cop trying to kill you? It wouldn't budge. "Come on, come on" It wouldn't release. "Of all the times to stick!" I kicked the underside of the dashboard. The seat belt tightened at the next ram-into, keeping me from hitting the wheel a third time.

" _Cut that out!"_ a voice played through the radio, _"Scrap, hold on!"_ the British-American accent caught my attention as my engine came to life on its own, peeling out of the spot it had been pushed did it sound so-so familiar?

"Wait, you don't go on your own!" I had to be dreaming, and if so, this was one f-upped dream. Instincts kicked in as I smashed the brake pedal, but it wouldn't give under pressure. So instead, I tried to yank the steering wheel, only to get shocked lightly, but enough to have me squeak and let go of the wheel.

" _I'm trying to drive! Do you want to be kicked out?"_ the truck growled, as his side mirrors adjusted to locate the not so cop behind us. I went back to jamming the brakes and hitting the wheel, "Yes, now stop-stop-stop! What the hell-" we were going 95 on the highway, weaving in and out of traffic. Yet somehow, it felt like we were going so much faster. The truck made a hard right off an exit ramp and fishtailed onto a dirt road. I was not in the mood anymore. "Come on! Just stop! Let me out!" the kicking of the dashboards and slamming of the wheel must have pissed him off.

" _Fine! Get out!"_ the radio growled, as the seatbelt unbuckled and the truck did a doughnut. _"Stay behind me!"_ It made me fall out of my seat and onto the gravel with a thud, sending pain up my elbow and into my shoulder s well as a stabling pain from my ankle. Cuts and scrapes were apparent and the wind was knocked out of me when I landed on my back.

There must have been no oxygen to my brain, because I could have sworn whirrs and clicks came from the Silverado as it transformed and stood up, blue eyes looking down at me with annoyance. A freaking robot; It was a freaking sentient robot. Never again was I going to joke about that, NEVER. Moreover, the cop car did the same damn thing, but it transformed mid drive, slamming into my truck-bot with a snarl. It set both of them flying to my right, as cop reached for his legs, trying to pull what looked like wires out from what looked like armor.

"I said stay behind me, now get to it!" The truck made a grab for the other's arm, twisting it up and over his shoulder. He caught himself on the landing, shouting something followed by 'Autobot' and came for another go, this time at me, who had been about fifteen feet to the right of my not so Chevy. Silverado robot seemed to be trying to protect me, as he looked my way with another one of his pissed looks. His face and scar reminded me of Ironhide's pissed face. There was no way, right?

In any event, the truck was right. I needed to run. With the feeling now returning to my elbow, I managed to pull myself up, before doubling over in pain. My ankle must have taken a worse beating than my left arm, as I looked to it. The ankle was purple and beginning to swell up my leg. My sandal was getting tight, but nothing looked broken. That was great, but there was no way I was going to full on run with it like this. My hands went over my head, bracing for the squishing of a lifetime. A smash did come, and my head flew up. The truck had locked hand to hand with the cop, a grunt coming from his, mouth. I think that was a mouth. It looked like one.

"Kyrie Walters," The cop bot hissed, looking down at me, the frightened immobile girl sitting between my 'protector's' legs. It knew my name. "Give me Kyrie Walters!"

"G-get s-scrapped!" my, must have been protector, overpowered the enemy. His hand transformed into a rather large cannon, charging blue and firing right at the cop's chest. He was able to move around the shot, but not enough. The blast clipped his… waist? as something blue poured out. Blood? No, that was red. Maybe it was robot blood? It was the same color as my truck's eyes.

It must have been enough for the cop, because he fell back, transforming back into a now shitty Mustang. I managed to get up to a standing position, as I saw the dust kick up. He flew off into the distance, lights still flashing.

"You alive?" the voice shook me from my stare, as I jumped and fell onto my back.

"Please, I'll give you anything you want. J-just leave me alone!" I covered my eyes with my arms, trying to steady my breathing. Tears had begun to fall off and onto the dirt, as I could hear the robot 'sigh'.

"I'm not going to hurt you- well, I did… But not like Barricade wanted to." He spat, as a bright light came into my eyes. "But you asked for it."

Barricade? What was he talking about? It was whatever at this point. " _I_ asked for it?" Like I had wanted to be shocked! His rue seemed to work as I uncovered my eyes, only to be blinded by the headlights from the grille, centered on his chest. My arms went straight back to my eyes. "What the- Cut that out!"

"SOO sorry, I was making sure you weren't broke." The light went off leaving spots behind my eyes. The accent was greatly amusing, but now was not the time to be laughing. There was a giant robot staring down at me, and trying to have a decent conversation with me. WAIT. It was speaking ENGLISH to me.

Maybe he was right, he didn't seem to have any interest in hurting me like the cop did. Slowly, I uncovered my eyes, coughing a bit. My lungs felt better now that I was laying down and not moving, but my body was in pain. I glanced up at the truck-bot, but there was no sense of hate, maybe annoyance, but no hate.

"Are you able to stand?" he questioned, lowering himself onto his knee, kneeling.

My mind was running in fight or flight, as I swallowed my fear. "Maybe. I was before you decided to scare me. My ankle is shot. Not to mention all the bruising on my ribs and elsewhere and gashes and scrapes." I wasn't trying to be an ass, promise. But I was pissed off. I had no idea what just happened, what the thing hovering over me was, and why it happened to be my truck in disguise. The damn military gave a sentient truck.

"Hey look! I could have let you be squished, but I didn't. You wanted out. I let you out." there was the annoyance, kind of like Ironhide. Why had I kept comparing him (a human) to this, this being? The robot put a hand to his neck and rubbed it gently. "But you're alright?"

He seemed to be genuine. I needed to calm down: the best I could anyway. "I-I am. I'm sorry I am not to trying to be a jerk. You did just save my life." It was the truth. If he hadn't rushed for me, I could have went splat or whatever the cop decided to do with me.

"It's fine. I shouldn't have tossed you out of the seat." He ignored the saved my life part, as he extended a finger to me. "Here, you could use some help."

"You'd better!" I laughed a bit. Maybe the robot wasn't so bad. I reached for his index finger, as I pulled myself up, grunting and grimacing from the pain. "Do you have a name? I don't think referring to you as Mr. Robot is very _appreciative._ "

"If I tell you, you can't get mad." Wait, where did that come from?

"I don't-"

"Ironhide."

Well call me a monkey's uncle. The voice was his. However, Ironhide was a person: or was he? A man appeared before me, as I screamed and fell yet again on my back. "What the-" The man was Ironhide, and it disappeared as fast as it had materialized. "That was just a hologram? I was talking to a giant robot the whole time? "Wait is that why you insisted I take the truck?"

"Wait-wait slow down. I know you want answers. But we need to leave before the Decepticons come back." He was looking to the horizon, where the sun was beginning to set.

"What are-" oops. Ironhide extended his hand again, as I steadied myself.

"I'll answer your questions after I get us out of this area. Now stand back a bit."

I didn't think twice as I stepped back the best I could to see Ironhide transform slowly back into my Silverado, the hood slapping down at the end of the transformation. That made me smile a bit. The driver's side door opened, beckoning me to get in. After blinking back the rest of my tears, my hobbled and bruised form was not easy to get into a truck that sat higher than normal. Thank God I didn't put a lift kit on it like I had wanted to.

The seatbelt slid across my chest gently, and I flinched, only to be met with a click and a stifled laugh from Ironhide. His voice came through the radio once more. " _That didn't hurt, did it? I just don't want you going and hitting my wheel if we get ran into again."_ There he went with the sarcasm. It wasn't like a rollercoaster. Being hit from behind was like being hit by a train. A heavy ass robot disguised as a train. That's right, the backend.

"Aren't the- I mean your rear axles bent to hell?"

" _Heh. No, I'm sturdier than your earth cars."_ His engine came to life as he pulled back into the dirt road, making his way back to the highway.

"Where are we going? Wait, Earth cars? Are you a-"

" _Alien. Yes, I suppose so."_ Holy lemon pancakes; a giant transforming sentient alien robot that was my 1997 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Z-71. Could I wake up now?

"And don't you think people will recognize this truck? I mean we- you did outrun a cop. Well they saw a cop." That was a good question.

" _That 'cop' was Barricade, and you do have a point. Do me a favor, get out."_ the truck came to a stop as he released the seat belt. He didn't throw me out this time, though.

"Wait, what are you going to do?" I held onto the cushioned seats. There was no way in hell he was leaving me here. Even if he was a giant alien robot, he was my only way out. I wasn't staying here with Barricade on the loose. Who said there weren't more? There was already him and Ironhide.

" _Just get out. You'll see."_ This time he began to transform, dumping me out onto the on ramp.

"Stop it with the dumping!" My ribs protested as I pulled myself up to a sitting position. "It's not as if anyone was coming down the highway or anything!" But Ironhide just transformed back into the truck, disappearing up the ramp. "You better not be leaving me!"

" _Wouldn't even think it!"_ Damn that sarcasm.

I waited for when seemed like half an hour, tracing patterns into the red soil. That asshole had left me, didn't he? It was dark now, and the only lights I got were from the cars on the highway. I had stayed close to the bridge so that no one would see me. That and I hated the dark.

"Dammit Ironhide-" Before I could voice my disgust, a big flipping midnight blue truck came down the entrance ramp (WRONG WAY), and I immediately went to run away. The truck pulled past me and skidded to stop. I fell yet again, but this time from my ankle. So help me if it was another Barricade.

" _Easy, Easy Kyrie."_ Ironhide?

"When I said to find a disguise I meant one that didn't stick out!" He had pranced up in a new form. It was a bigger than my truck and harder to get into midnight blue 2007 GMC Topkick. Didn't I just say I was lucky I hadn't gotten a new lift kit for my truck? "Now how am I supposed to get into that?" I stifled a laugh, getting up from the ground for what seemed like the thousandth time.

" _You told me to get another disguise, and this one is more true to my size. This is actually, what I was before I had to become that small ass rust bucket. Now as to how you're going to get in, well-"_

"Hey! I liked that rust bucket!" I grabbed onto the steering wheel, hoisting myself into the mammoth of a truck, my body moaning on the inside. I fell into the set, trying to hide the pain. But Ironhide must have known, because we was gentle in his steering and slipped the seatbelt across my chest gently, clicking it into its holder. "So you have been my truck the whole time?"

Ironhide seemed to think for a second, pulling back onto the interstate. _"Yes. But it wasn't my idea. It was Lennox's."_

More questions than answers. That's what I had come to. Nevertheless, I didn't want to piss him off more than I had already. He had 'put up' with me while I was having my little episodes, and I really didn't want to be dumped to the ground again. _Just start from a certain point, Kyrie._

"Let's just start from the beginning. Where are you going, exactly?"

"Tranquility, California." No emotion in that answer. Smartass.

"Ok and you're an alien? So if you're not human built, where'd you come from?"

" _A planet called Cybertron."_

The first answer sunk in. shit. "Wait! California! That's like 30 hours away!"

* * *

 **Well my pretties, so ends the first chapter of this story. What will be the 'excuse' Ironhide give Kyrie as to why her parents are gone? What did she do that sparked the Decepticon's interest?**

 **I will try my hardest to have chapter two up by the end of the week. College Senior this year, though! Anyway, PLEASE review! I really want to know what is wrong, what your predictions are, and I always am one to read suggestions!**

 **Also, please let me know if something doesn't look right. Spell check does not catch correctly spelled words used in the wrong context. Fragments may or may not count, as we people do like to talk in fragments ;)**

 **Again, please review! It lets me know someone is interested in my story or wishes to help me out as a writer!**

 **Yuuki Rin Mazirif :)**


	2. The Beginning of a Long Summer (Trip)

Chapter Two: The Beginning of a Long Summer (and Trip)

 **Hi!**

 **Second chapter is up (shorter I know..) but at the end of the week as promised! I want to say thank you to the three wonderful people who reviewed my story! Reviewing it makes me want to write more!**

 **As for 'Falling', the rewrite should start around October, so stick around to see what changes are going to be made. I am going to re-watch the movies and get a better barring on where I want to go.**

 **The third chapter will be up within the next two weeks. (Ignore this next rant if you want to!) I have two five page papers due, one on Dyslexia and one on how it effects a child's phonics and mathematics skills. In addition, a Guided reading sequence. You don't have to know what that is… Gotta love college!**

 **ANYWAY…**

 **As always, I do not own anything about Transformers including characters, plot lines, etc. I also do not own any songs that pop up in here.**

 **I do own Kyrie! No takies!**

 **ALRIGHT! Here we go! Roll out!**

* * *

The first answer sunk in. Shit. "Wait! California! That's like 30 hours away!"

"Your point? Now pay attention!"

"I will when I have answers! I'm sick of this whole thing already, and I have only known you were a robot for about an hour. I don't think you understand-" I shouldn't have snipped back, as Ironhide let on the brakes. I was caught by the seatbelt as my ribs protested and my eyes closed tightly, before we began to accelerate once more. There had been a man in a smaller ford behind us, who only flew into the middle lane, before cussing, flipping us off and gunning it around us. Ironhide payed no attention, as I slinked into my seat as he went by.

 _"I already know one human boy who acts like he is the boss and can't stop talking without babbling, I don't need another."_ Why was he always getting mad at me? I was the one being kidnapped after nearly being killed by a giant bad robot.

"Fine. Sorry." I felt sorry for that poor other boy that had to put up with Ironhide. "I'll stay quiet while you explain this whole fiasco, but I get to ask the questions if I am confused."

My seemly abusive protector seemed to be thinking it over, before he sighed. _"Fine. But don't go babbling."_

A small smile began to form at my lips, as I sat up straight."Promise."

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After about an hour of annoyed Ironhide's explanations about Cybertron, the war, and how it came to earth, the pain in the aft had taken to being silent. He still hadn't answered me about my parents or why I was on my way to a small ass town now 26 hours away. Luckily I had packed a little. I was growing pissed, and he knew it, as he was not speaking to me. I was going to protest, but I didn't want to be brake-checked again.

Instead, I tried my best to ask nicely. "So why are we heading to California?" The sentence came out a bit snarky instead. I braced for another go, but it didn't happen. Ironhide's engine remained steady, as he passed another semi on the right. I was getting tired, as it was just a bit after ten, and I had become hungry after pulling questions from a thirty-ton robot. It was only met with silence. "Are you going to give me the silent treatment all 26 hours- I" my stomach grumbled, as I slapped my arms around it. My cheeks must have been bright red, as they were burning.

Ironhide finally broke the silence, as he switched into the left lane. _"There's a few small places that you can re-I mean, eat. You can also get some Band-Aids for those scratches. We'll be there in about ten minutes."_ His voice was a little less snarky, but the sarcastic tone still hung at the end.

"I don't need-" another rumble, and I totally forgot that the asshole had dumped me and broken me. "Alright. Fine." The munchies weren't going to cut it, and my cuts were stinging. Not to mention my ankle was still kind of funny. Some protector he was. "I'll eat, but only if you answer a few more questions when I come back." I kept going, hearing the grumble from the radio. I did feel bad interrogating him, even if I needed more answers. "I'm sorry."

" _Just from being your truck for about a year and a half, you apologize a lot, you know that? So stop it."_

"Sor-I mean, ok."

Ironhide pulled over to the exit, and over to a truck stop that was surprisingly busy for 10:30 in the evening. When we came to a stop in a farther out parking space, I jumped into the back of the cab and pulled my wallet from the backseat. I grumbled quietly to Ironhide how my stuff managed to stay right where it was through a fight and a style change, but he only said it was complicated and that I needed to go eat. This whole conversation and current time frame are complicated, buddy! Luckily, I had a credit card, as I had no physical cash on me.

After _falling_ out of the driver's door with my sucky ankle, a semi had pulled next to us. The man got out and waved, before coming closer after eyeballing the truck.

"Told you," I murmured to Ironhide, "This form isn't exactly _incognito_." I swear the truck vibrated after that sentence.

The man who had parked his semi next to me smiled. "What's a small lady like you doing out at this hour and what's with the scratches and bruises?" he questioned, looking over at me and then to my truck- well Ironhide- before settling his eyes on me. "and that's a big truck for ya'." The man seemed nice enough, but I didn't like how close he was getting to me. I was between a large semi and a large pickup. Well, massive. This man didn't seem to want to back off. Ever hear of personal space? I went to back up into the truck to give some space, when I ran into a familiar chest. Ironhide, well, as a person.

"It's _my_ truck, she was in a small accident, and we're going to see relatives." He seemed to be studying the man, as he took a few steps in front of me. "Anything else?"

The man was not short by his own accord, maybe 5' 11", but Ironhide still towered over him. It put little 5' 0" (NOT 4'11"!) me to shame. The man now seemed intimidated, before coughing, scratching his head and walking away.

Ironhide looked back at me, as my eyes darted to the ground. "Thanks for that. I don't like being stuffed in the corner, well, between a semi and a truck, with a strange guy at 10:30 at night."

"You're rambling again." he took off for the building, trying to leave me behind.

"Am not! And that was a thank you! You could at least say you're welcome!" I jogged up to him, giving him a glare. "Whatever." I left it there. "I met you back then in that 'form'. Why didn't you just do that when we were driving? That way I didn't have to?"

"I can only keep this form for a short amount of time." He answered, pulling open the door for me. "So I just let you drive. Besides, the windows are tinted enough that no one can see in anyway. You really don't need to sit in the driver's seat- what were you doing?"

My index finger was poking his arm. He felt like a real person. "Seeing how real you were. Don't judge me! And fine. Then after I destroy some pizza, I'm going to sleep in the back seat! You'd like that anyway, wouldn't you?" I responded. "I'll be back. I'm going to the bathroom."

I looked better than I had thought. There were no scratches on my face, and barely any on my arms. Wetting some paper towels, I cleaned my cuts, so that they would be ready to be covered. My ankle was a wonderful shade of purple, but at least I could walk on it. I also went to the bathroom, so I wouldn't go bothering Ironhide to stop again.

I was out in five, and then walking into an aisle. Band-Aids of all kinds were on the shelves, as I grabbed the Finding Nemo ones. I needed a little bit of happy in my life right now. I also picked up some Neosporin, more Tylenol and some bandages. Those would do wonders on my ankle. After grabbing a coke bottle from the cooler, I went walking over to the counter, and into the three-person line. The man who had talked to me earlier was finished paying, and flew out of the building quick. "You really need to work on your people skills."

Ironhide was waiting up by the counter, "If I hadn't answered like that, he wouldn't have left. Did you want to talk with him in that, what was it you said? 'being stuffed in the corner, well, between a semi and a truck, with a strange guy at 10:30 at night'." He was being an ass again. But then again, when wasn't he?

"Oh bite me!" I walked up to the counter, placing the items on the counter. I smiled at the clerk, "Can I get two slices of pizza from the warmer?"

The cashier looked at me then to Ironhide. I wonder what he was thinking. A 5 foot girl who looked like she had seen better days and was buying medical supplies, and a maybe 6'3" spikey black-haired man, dressed in fatigues and a black shirt with a scar on his eye staring holes in everyone he looked at. Not to mention he looked like her was in his thirty's. Nothing was seriously wrong with this picture. Nothing. "Sure." He pulled out the two slices and scanned the items, "That will be $27.36." he looked at me once more, as I swiped my card and entered the numbers. "What happened to you?"

"Four-wheeler accident. My friend here decided to let me learn how to drive. It may have ended up in a ditch." The lie came easy, and it rather scared me. "I learned not to hit the throttle so hard… Well, have a great night."

As we left the building, Ironhide looked over at me with a grin. "Bet that was hard for you to do. Miss, 'I don't like to lie.'"

Crap. He had been my truck for so long; I forgot he had heard every phone conversion I had had with boyfriends and friends alike. "Would you stop that? It's like you are a peeping tom!" my bag went into his stomach, as I marched away towards the truck the best I could.

Did he know what that was? He had to. If not the internet was in his reach. I hoped that in learning everything on the internet, he knew what was true and what was not. "Just get in the truck. And so help me, if you get crumbs in my interior, I will make you walk to California."

"You wouldn't!" I objected, climbing in the passenger's seat as the 'fake Ironhide' disappeared. "And you told me that Optimus Prime, was that it, yah, that Optimus said that you couldn't harm humans!"

 _"Oh really? He's not here right now."_

We were acting like two year olds. "I'll just tell him that you shocked me, dumped me, and broke me. You can clearly tell-"

 _"And it won't happen again."_ His tone went serious, as the engine started. _"I didn't mean to get you hurt. You just kind of have a habit of pissing me off."_

"Ironhide-"

 _"Doesn't matter. It won't happen again, understand?"_ I wasn't used to this Ironhide. His tone scared me a bit, as I pulled out some Band-Aids. I was going to address my wounds before I devoured the pizza. Without getting one crumb on the seat or floor that is. The big Aft went silent as he merged onto the freeway once more. _"Do you need light?"_ The cab lights came on, as I looked at myself.

"None of this was your fault. You were trying to protect me, and I was being hard to handle." The Neosporin helped with the stinging, as I covered all my cuts. There were two deeper cuts on my arms, but most of them were scratches from the rocks on the road. I had been wearing a half sleeve shirt, which had helped. Most of the damage was on my legs, because I wasn't wearing pants. Those took a little longer. Finally, I wrapped my ankle the best I could. "There. See, I'm not broken. Even if I said I was."

 _"Glad to hear it. Now eat."_

"Ok dad."

After another hour of painstaking work keeping crumbs and coke off the floor and seats, I was full. Not just with food, but with questions. Ironhide hated me and I knew it. However, he said he would answer them.

His accent came through the radio. _"We've still got about 24 hours until we get there, since you don't_ want me to speed _. Why don't you get some rest?"_

I stifled a yawn, as I laughed. "You're just trying to get out of Twenty Questions again!"

 _"Am not. But its 11:30 and you need to rechar-I mean sleep."_

"FINE. But you will answer some more questions in the morning?" It was more of a statement than a question.

 _"Fine. Whatever, just sleep already._ _Pain in the aft…_ _"_

"I heard that!" through another yawn, I managed to just get into the backseat. Being 5 foot had its advantages. Also, I felt weird being IN Ironhide, did I tickle, was it awkward feeling? I'd ask in the morning. The bench seat in the back was big enough for me and I didn't have to crunch up real bad. I faced the back seat, and let out a sigh…

"You're the pain in the aft…" Before I started to drift off, I began to let my mind wander. I was now on the Decepticons' radars because I happened to be seen with Ironhide. On top of that, I was heading to California with another Cybertronian, who doesn't seem to like me. But he does have his moments… What the hell was I doing?

* * *

 **And that's the end of the first day of travel! Kyrie can't seem to get answers out of Ironhide! Oh! And Kyrie was given the whole spill about Cybertron and the bots, just so you know. She knows Mission City was a battle between the Decepticons and the Autobots, but her family was left out. She still has no idea why she is going to California, though.**

 **As I said at the beginning, I will try to have the next chapter up in the next two weeks!**

 **Please read AND REVIEW! Please? I'm** **not** **desperate; I just want to know what everyone thinks…**

 **Also, please let me know if something doesn't look right. Spell check does not catch correctly spelled words used in the wrong context. Fragments may or may not count, as we people do like to talk in fragments ;)**

 **Yuuki :)**


	3. Just 10 More Hours

**Hello, Hello :)**

 **I LIED! I got another chapter done. I reallllyyyyy should be working on my papers, but this story is calling to me. I have been working on them little by little though, so I can spoil myself once and awhile!**

 **So, I added something in at the end that I think a certain reviewee might like ;)**

 **As always, I do not own anything about Transformers including characters, plot lines, etc. I also do not own any songs that pop up in here.**

 **I do own Kyrie! No takies!**

 **ALRIGHT! Here we go! Roll out!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Just 10 More Hours…

 _You know that weird sensation you get in your stomach when you are on a roller coaster? Well, right now it sure felt like it. However, I couldn't see anything. It was black, everywhere…_

 _My heart was beating so loud, I swear I could hear it through my chest. I was scared. Without a second thought, I called out to the only person who I needed most. "Ironhide!"…_

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After the dream shook me awake, I faintly could hear a conversation going on in the cab. _"She's stuck with me now."_

 _"Dat' poor little miss-"_

 _"Shut up Jazz! I didn't choose to be stuck with her!"_

The first voice was definitely Ironhide's through the radio, but the second one… What a strange accent, and what was with the English… I didn't want to come back to reality just yet… but…

"Mmm." My senses began to come back to me in tidbits. So did the throbbing of my ankle. Too bad this wasn't a dream, too. I fell asleep in the back seat, after I thought for sure I'd have the worst time trying. "Ironhide?"

 _"Thanks Jazz, you've gone and woke her up!"_

"Who are you talking to?" I finally opened my eyes and rolled over the best I could, shielding my eyes from the sun. "Crap…"

 _"Morn'in little miss."_

I jumped up after that sentence, my eyes wide open. "Okay, who's that? Don't go playing with me like that!"

 _"It's not me and it's no one you need to worry about. IT'S just Jazz."_ came Ironhide's grumble through the engine _. "I told Prime I could handle myself-"_

Jazz. The name was familiar. Oh! That's right, Optimus's First Lieutenant. I think that's who he was. Another robot to come along for the ride? I still didn't know why I had followed along with Ironhide's stupid road trip. Maybe I should have sneaked away at that rest stop.

That would have been a bad idea. I think Ironhide coming after me was ten times worse than running into Barricade again. Besides, I don't think I could go back to living a normal life anymore. Not knowing what I knew now. In addition, if what Ironhide was telling me was correct, there were more of them. Both sides. 'This 'Jazz' seemed to only solidify that statement.

I searched out the window when a silver gleam caught my eye. There was a Pontiac Solstice following beside us in the middle lane out of seven, keeping pace. Yep, it was him. Great another robot to TRY to get along with.

" _Don' go gitin yo' panties in a bunch, Ironhide. She'd a woke up e'ventually. Beside's, at da' rate ol' Megs be recovern, you could use da' help."_ I lied; I think Jazz and I were going to get along just fine.

However, that whole sentence was a mess. I'd ask later. "Morning?" I didn't know where to talk, so I just directed my voice to the dashboard up front, as I had been with my guardian. "I didn't think anyone was out this way. And when did he get here?"

" _Unfortunately he came to meet up with us just as you fell asleep, so about ten hours ago."_ Ironhide grumbled, breaking lightly behind another car. _"Why are we stopping?"_

Crap, I still had 14 hours with this motley crew of vehicles. I hope the others aren't as dumb to go and pick such _incognito cars._ Only time would tell.

I looked out the windshield. It was nine in the morning and we were heading through a city… Rush hour. Stuck in traffic with a grouchy ass bot… I should have stayed asleep. Maybe I'd ask to go sit with Jazz. Well, I don't think mama bear Ironhide would let that fly…

"It's rush hour. You know, when everyone decides that it's time to go to work at the same time and make a mess of traffic." My shoulder popped, as I climbed ungracefully into the front driver's seat, looking over at Jazz.

" _We don't have time for this. The longer we stay on the road, the bigger target we become. Move, Dammit!"_ the horn sounded from the truck, as I instantly slapped the dashboard.

"Stop that! Everyone feels the same right now. Don't go drawing attention to yourself. Robot in DISQUISE, remember?" I had only been up about five minutes, and already I had grown annoyed.

" _The internet says dat' there is an a'ccident 'bout a mile up. Make ya' selves at ome'."_ Jazz's engine cut off, as he just sat in the middle lane beside us.

" _Huh. He's right. They say it's going to take hours to clean it up."_ Ironhide, Mr. Impatient, sounded his horn again. This time I kicked the dash. He grumbled, but didn't attempt to do it again. _"Stop that!"_

My hands went through my hair, as I let out a yawn. "Only if you just calm down. You might as well take a break. Don't you get tired driving this long?"

" _We have more energy than you squishies do."_ Another Cybertronian concept I wish I had. Not having to sleep… That would be wonderful. You know how much I could get done with 24 hours? No to mention the late night papers and test studies…

"Squishes?" I was a human, not a Jellyfish from Finding Nemo. Dory was in my thoughts. Whatever, I let it go. "Jazz is taking it easy and you should, too." There came a sigh, then a look to the dashboard. "Think of it this way, at least I don't have to pee and I'm not hungry yet."

" _If you did, I'd tell you to walk."_

" _Sure_. So, since we are stuck in this mess for a while, am I allowed to ask a few more questions? Or are you going to go all silent on me again?"

Jazz just laughed over the radio. That would be another question to ask. _"He just lik dat'. Don't take no o'ffence to it."_

" _Fine. Seeing as how I have no choice."_

Where do I start? I still had questions about the war. But Ironhide seemed to have a hard time telling me about what happened back then. It must have still been a sore spot. There was also the issue of the scar on his eye. No, I didn't want to ask that, either. He did lose his planet and now had nowhere to go. Staying here on Earth must have been hard, too and he didn't seem to like us 'squishies' very much. _Not much like home, is it?_ But I think I was beginning to become an exception.

There was my family, but he had told me last time we played twenty questions that it would be better if Optimus told me the truth. I don't see why he couldn't just tell me but I didn't want to start something. Maybe I could ask Jazz. He seemed to be all right. Then Ironhide might get mad that I was fishing answers from him.

I still had no idea why I was going to California. Funny thing was, I really didn't protest. After almost being killed by Barricade, the thought must have been 'stay with Ironhide and ask questions later'.

"Could I ask why we are going to California?" I questioned, as I rummaged through my bag. I pulled out the Tylenol and a bottle of water to wash it down. But I wouldn't dare drink anymore. Having to use the bathroom in a traffic jam was not something I wanted to experience.

" _That's where the others are right now. Before Barricade made an unexpected appearance, I was to report back to Lennox and Optimus. However, it all changed when I accidently got you involved. That phone call you received the night you were coming home from college was a Decepticon known as Soundwave, Megatron's communications expert. When I heard that tone, I knew leaving you behind was a bad idea."_ He growled a bit, the seat rumbling under me _._

So instead of staying home and hiding in my room, I was going to an unknown place to meet up with a bunch of robots. At least they had made peace with the military. I needed to see a few human faces after all of this.

" _I was going to leave that night after you had fallen asleep, but after I told Prime, I was told to stay with you until we could straighten it out. I ended up going on a patrol around the city."_

"So I wasn't crazy when I woke up and you were not in the same place I had left you? Thanks for staying and not leaving me to die." The tone was sarcastic, but I really did appreciate it. He didn't want to be my truck in the first place, and reluctantly drove around with me for a year and a half. "Seriously, thank you." and the cell phone… it was sitting in my bag on and waiting for another alien phone call. "Can they still track us?" my heart skipped a beat.

" _Don't go getting all mushy on me! And no, as long as you are with me, they can't get to that phone of yours"_

The battery was pulled out of it faster than he could speak anyway. Jazz stifled a laugh.

" _Remember that newscast you saw yesterday?"_ That seemed like so long ago, yesterday. _"Well, Megatron had been revived by a few surviving Decepticons at the abyss and after freeing himself, has went into hiding."_

"So Megatron isn't as dead as you thought?" a shiver went down my spine and into my fingers grabbed my shorts and squeezed.

I was beginning to understand that Ironhide could see me even in the cab. _"No. But he don't dare try something right now. He was dead. The All-spark that Sam forced into his chest killed him. From what we know, the Decepticons 'sacrificed' one of their own to rebuild and reactivate him."_

My hands still wouldn't release their tension. Knowing I was on the Decepticon crap list was beginning to make me sick. "And now he's back to do what he does best, destroy."

" _We'r still not sho' what he is a hidin'"_ Jazz jumped in _, "But whate'vr it is, it's gonna be big."_

Way to make me feel better, Jazz. I took a deep breath and looked at the dashboard. Hopefully people didn't think I was crazy. "What about Sam and his girlfriend? Aren't they in just as much trouble, if not more because Sam killed Megatron, than me?" Thinking that someone else could have been feeling the same way as me made me even worse. I looked out the windshield, no one was moving yet. It had been about 20 minutes now. I was starting to get a bit hungry now, too.

" _Sam has his own guardian. Besides he is more concerned with going to college in the fall."_ Oh that's right, Bumblebee. Wonder if he looked like one? And Sam, he must have been a year younger than me? _"Megatron has enough on his plate with his recent awaking. We don't think he or any of his followers are going to do something stupid like yesterday until Megatron recovers."_

"I guess that makes me feel a bit better." My fingers uncurled from my pants, as I rested them on my lap. "Can I ask another question?" Silence. I was taking that as a yes and changing the subject. "How in the world can I hear Jazz?"

Jazz began to laugh, _"Com-link. It's like a' walkie talkie a' sorts."_

"So you can talk to each other? How far away can you do that?"

" _As far as we please."_ Ironhide bragged, _"I told you our technology is better than yours is. The only time it acts up is if the Con's jam the signal. Then, unless we are super close, we can't communicate."_ The aft said that so matter of factly. Don't go dissing our technology!

Traffic stood still for another two hours. What sucked was that we were still 14 hours from where we needed to be and now two hours behind. Ironhide had turned on the air conditioning, stating that he didn't want me to "melt". Smart ass. I was going to protest, as people would wonder how I could keep the car off and not roast, but I wanted the air. Jazz had taken to playing I Spy, but he ran out of things to spy. Duh, we _were_ sitting still. Then he tried the alphabet game. I shot that one down. He had been looking up things to do on the internet, all of which required motion to play. Ironhide ignored the both of us like usual, with the occasional "come on" and grumble.

I also learned that you could shut off the link from either side. My afthole friend here blocked Jazz out for a second, before I complained. We were trying to take our minds off what could be happening in the coming days, weeks or even months. _"My turn."_ his voice caught me off guard, as Ironhide had been silent. _"What were you dreaming about that your heart was racing? Was it one of your human nightmares?"_

Jazz had explained to me a little while ago that they could scan me and see what was going on. I exploded and told them to never do that again, using peeping tom once more. The conversation had ended there. I didn't know Ironhide cared enough to see if I was all right. "It was nothing."

" _Not from what I was reading."_ He was being the concerned one now. It was somewhat awkward. I wonder what Jazz was thinking about, seeing as Ironhide had closed the com-link so he couldn't hear our conversation.

"I said it was nothing." The dream was foggy now more than when I first woke up anyway. "Please just drop it. I'm fine now, see." My fake smile didn't detour him, as he rumbled.

" _Nothing is nothing. Being scared of something is not."_ The anger left his voice. _"If something's bothering you, let me know."_

"I'm fine. I promise. It's just that this, all of this is a lot to take in." the truck in front of us started up and let off the brakes. Finally, we were moving.

" _When we get just outside the city here in about another half an hour, you can get something to eat. And don't say no, I know you're hungry. You have been for the last two and a half hours."_

"Stop scanning me!"

" _Only if you stop asking me twenty questions."_ Looks like neither of us were going to do what it was that we both asked.

Jazz had merged in behind us, and the com-link was back up between the two. Ironhide was itching to get back on the road, seeing as we were now three hours behind, and had taken to going 115 down the highway. I protested, but he had said that we needed to get moving. After a round of cussing each other out, I gave up, sprawling out on the front seats.

An exit came just outside the city with a McDonalds. I really didn't want greasy food as my first meal of the day, even if it was noon. But I didn't say no. I knew both of the bots were worried about my safety. I didn't want them to worry about my health, too.

"I'll be quick, then we can get back on the road." I whispered to the both of them. My feet hit the pavement, as I grabbed my bag from the backseat. Might as well change the Band-Aids and re-wrap my ankle.

The restaurant wasn't packed at all when I walked in, so I went straight to the bathroom. The cuts and scratches were beginning to scab over so I changed the Band-Aids and put more Neosporin on them, but my ankle was still as bad as before. I should have picked up some Ibuprofen, too. Shoulda, woulda, coulda. Thank goodness, I had brought clothes, my deodorant and other goodies.

After changing into a green school t-shirt and black shorts, putting on deodorant, brushing my teeth and combing my hair I left the bathroom and made my way to the counter. _Simple, something simple and quick._ "Could I get a 10 piece nugget?"

"Sure, do you want the combo and any sauce?"

"Ranch, please and a small Lemonade, no fries." I didn't want to get a drink because of the trip, but I didn't want Ironhide or Jazz saying that I wasn't drinking enough. And the fries, a no-no with the grease and grumpy bot. It was going to be hard enough to eat in there again with the crumb factor. "That'll be all."

"That would be $4.25." I swiped my card. I wonder if Soundwave could track my card… _No, Kyrie._ I shook my head. _Don't think like that._

"Thank you." He said, as my food was placed on the counter in front of me. The perks of going when no one is there. Picking up my bag and drink, I left the building and headed over to the _incognito_ cars parked by themselves in the back parking lot. They still were not in the slightest bit hidden.

"Hey, can you find a place to pull off where no one will see us. I know you're pressed for time, but-"

" _Fine."_ Ironhide didn't protest, as he opened the driver's side door for me. _"I think it's time I stretched my legs. You made a good point. We are already behind. What's a few more minutes."_ Where was my Ironhide? Was he low on Energon?

"Jazz? What did you do to him? He never acts like this? Did something happen while I was gone?"

" _Nope. Noth'in little miss."_ His engine kicked over, as he pulled in front of us.

"Okay…" after raising my eyebrows, I pulled myself into the truck. "Sure." At least the Tylenol was subduing my ankle. It would be yelling at me otherwise.

I waited to eat as Jazz lead us to a deserted road in the middle of nowhere. I was beginning to learn that the west was nothing but dirt and city. My small little town in Iowa didn't seem so bad anymore. After about five minutes, he came to a stop just off a dirt road.

" _No one's gonna' be ere'."_ Jazz answered as we pulled beside him just off the road. Another fall out of the truck and I was safely out of the truck. With my food and a blanket, I settled down on the ground. At least I was clean. _"Check dis' out."_

Jazz's transformation was definitely something to watch. His name fit; Jazz. He breakdanced onto his feet before crashing onto the ground beside me. It made me laugh and lose my Lemonade out of my nose. Jazz laughed, too, trying to mimic my little mess. I hadn't seen him as a robot yet, and soon found out when Ironhide transformed, that Jazz was much shorter than he was.

"Small and mighty like me?" came the question, as I shifted to see Jazz. Ironhide was stretching after the long drive a little ways out.

"Y'ep. We mighty got' ta' stick together."

"Uh huh." I mumbled between chicken nuggets, looking over that the mountain range. Ever since Ironhide told me about what each of the Decepticons could do, I looked around. This time it was Starscream and his ability to fly. They could FLY. From what I was told by my two bodyguards, none of the Autobots could fly. That sentence made me worried.

After downing my chicken nuggets and my lemonade, I looked over at Ironhide. He had transformed back into vehicle mode, idling a few feet away. He must have been watching the skies. After waving to Jazz that I was going over to him, he only nodded before transforming and idling, too.

After kicking a few rocks, I came to rest on the tailgate, facing the mountains. "Thinking?"

" _Yeah."_

"Things will be okay, right?" My nerves never had really subsided since I was told about everything. I think that was the reason I was having nightmares.

" _You've got nothing to worry about. It's my job to worry. Got that?"_

I turned around from where I had been leaning against the gate. I looked at the tailgate, where scratches had formed from what must have been Barricade. "I thought you said that he didn't do anything?" My hands traced the scratches, some of which were deep. His armor was a lot stronger than anything we had here on earth, and if Barricade gashed it, you knew it had to have been a great force.

Thinking, I pulled out a Band-Aid from my pocket and opened it up. "Here." I placed the sticky side down, "Now we match." My finger pressed the Band-Aid to the gash, as I let out a small smile. "Sorry I hindered your helping me. If you didn't have to act like my car, maybe you could have stopped him from ramming into you like that." My palm went to the Band-Aid, as I let out a sigh.

Ironhide seemed to be thinking it over. I was surprised he'd let me put the Dory Band-Aid on him. Maybe he didn't know what was on it. Or what Dory was. He had the internet! _"I knew it was him the minute he pulled up. I had been expecting something to happen after Soundwave's little stunt was pulled. It just didn't think it would be so soon. However, if I would have transformed then, you could have been seriously hurt. So I played dumb for a few seconds before I did something."_

He could have stopped me from ramming into the steering wheel. No, just shut up Kyrie! "Still, I'm sorry-"

" _Stop it with the sorry and take that blasted thing off me!"_ There was _my_ Ironhide.

"No. You need to take care of yourself, too. You worry about me, so now it's my turn!" My leg swung around, as I looked over to Jazz. "Come on, we should be heading to California. You said it yourself. The longer we sit here, the bigger the sitting ducks we become."

" _Whatever, but so help me if it's one of those little kid Band-Aids like you have-"_

I scoffed and looked to Jazz. He seemed to be trembling. He was laughing internally. "I wouldn't even think it."

I waved over to Jazz as he pulled up beside us. One last time, I looked at the tailgate. Dory's face was right there, staring back at me. Another smile pulled at my lips, as I jumped into the front seat.

Maybe 10 more hours with Ironhide wasn't as bad as I thought it would be…

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 **And there is the end of chapter three! I am hoping to get another one written up soon!**

 **Again, please read AND REVIEW? Please? I'm** **not** **desperate; I just want to know what everyone thinks…**

 **Also, please let me know if something doesn't look right. Spell check does not catch correctly spelled words used in the wrong context. Fragments may or may not count, as we people do like to talk in fragments ;)**

 **Yuuki :)**


	4. One Last Hurrah!

**Hello again!**

 **I said I was going to do my best to get another chapter up… Well here it is. This one is going to be shorter (sorry), as I want to save the whole base thing for the next few chapters. Yes, this story varies slightly from the second movie, but it will align in its own way…**

 **As always, I do not own anything about Transformers including characters, plot lines, etc. I also do not own any TV shows that pop up in here.**

 **I do own Kyrie! No takies!**

 **ALL RIGHT! Here we go! Roll out!**

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Chapter 4: One Last Hurrah!

I waved over to Jazz as he pulled up beside us. One last time, I looked at the tailgate. Dory's face was right there, staring back at me. Another smile pulled at my lips, as I jumped into the front seat.

Maybe 10 more hours with Ironhide wasn't as bad as I thought it would be…

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Four hours, that's all that was left of my road trip. It was now seven o'clock in the evening. Jazz and I were back to playing road games, since we were moving. Did I say that we were pushing 200 miles an hour now? Note to anyone listening, NEVER EVER point out that Ironhide is going too fast. He just gets annoyed and drives faster. It started out that we were going about 110…

That lead to a whole explanation of how the mech (another conversation after calling Ironhide a robot, and femme was a girl term) could disable scanners of nearby law enforcement. I also don't think the cops would pull over a huge ass truck if he realized it wasn't exactly human and going speeds not exactly normal for a truck and sports car...

"Why can't we ever find an X?" my body nestled into the driver's seat as I kept my hands on the wheel out of habit. That and we were FLYING. I let out a sigh. "Anytime we do find it, it's for x-ray or the first letter on a license plate."

 _"Don' go lookin' a' me, your people invented da' alphabet. Cybertronian is where it's at!"_ came Jazz, who was leading the parade of speedsters. What was this, The Flash? Is this what he felt like?

"Is that so? Cause I wouldn't know." I snickered, gripping the wheel a bit harder. My nerves had almost subsided since talking with the two Autobots. Maybe it was because they acted more human than I could have ever realized. Ironhide and Jazz act like any other friends. They bickered at each other and called each other names. However, they never meant anything by it; I hoped. Well, maybe not Jazz, but Ironhide seemed to like to mean what he said.

However, this small ping in my stomach just wouldn't go away. I couldn't let it go. It seemed that I wasn't going to fall for the two mechs attempts to keep my mind off the unknown. That left me feeling guilty, because I know that my guardians were always watching my temperament and probably scanning me constantly without my knowing. All I seemed to be good at was making them worry about me on top of Megatron's recent return to the war.

 _"Something wrong?"_ Ironhide questioned, as he veered around a white Malibu to follow Jazz. The man in the car yelled out the window to slow down, as I just laughed. I stopped worrying when Ironhide had let out a terrible noise, scaring the hell out a woman in a Grand Cherokee about an hour ago. No one could follow Ironhide or Jazz with their speeds, and if they did, it wasn't going to end well. They would be alive, but their car probably wouldn't… " _Kyrie?"_

Snapped out of my own world, I jumped at my name. "Ye-Yeah. I'm fine. I was just thinking." It wasn't a lie, I was thinking. But, I truly wasn't fine.

 _"No, you're not. I let it go last time, but I don't think I can this time."_

 _"Fo' once in is' life, Ironhide's right. Ya' can't keep dis' all bottled up. It'll ex'plode eve'tually."_ Damnit Jazz, not you, too.

"I'm fine. Just let me think in peace." My hands fell from the steering wheel, as I fell sideways onto the front seat, my legs still hanging over. The seats were comfortable and cool, as I let my eyes close. "Please, don't worry about me. You have things you need to worry about, and I shouldn't be one of them."

" _Da' minute we met, I had something ta' worry a'bout."_ There was a small hint of anger in his voice. I wasn't used to Jazz acting like that. I opened my eyes and looked up at the roof. " _You're one of us now. A friend. It's our job to worry about you."_

"You only have known me for about seven hours. Maybe seventeen since I was asleep for ten of those hours." I countered. "And Ironhide… Well…" Stop there Kyrie.

What was strange was that there was no accent in that sentence, and it seemed to make its point. Maybe bottling up my emotions and keeping them hidden wasn't such a good thing. Look what I had done to Lennox. I blew up on him. Then I wouldn't even pick up my phone when he tried to call. Now knowing that Ironhide was always relaying back to the other mechs and Lennox how I was doing, I felt guilty. Lennox knew how I felt from his quiet conversations with Ironhide, but yet I wouldn't even tell him.

Maybe I should just get it all out or maybe just a sentence. "Okay, I'm not fine. Is that what you wanted to know?"

 _"Yes. If you would have been fine after everything that's happened, I would have been worried. You're not the only one who felt this way after they learned about all of this. Samuel was not exactly happy about it. He still isn't. The military wasn't fine when they learned the truth, either."_ A laugh came from Ironhide, _"And you know what your military is like."_

My chest rumbled, "I could imagine!" but it stopped just as quick as it had started. "I just can't stop thinking about Megatron, Barricade and this whole fiasco the universe decided to get me into. It seems so unreal." I flipped myself back up in the driver's seat and ran my fingers over the Autobot symbol on the steering wheel. "I guess I just don't understand why I got involved. I'm a nobody. It's not as if I was the one who had the All-spark, or that I was the one that killed Megatron. I don't wish any of what has happened to me on Sam, but he was the reason the Decepticons lost the Mission City battle. If they should be going after anyone, it should have been him. Yes, you happened to be hiding out with me, but I'm not a threat to them in any way. So I guess I just don't understand any of this."

 _"It's a little more complicated than that. Megatron is just starting to recover from what we thought was a permanent recharge, and Bumblebee is watching over Sam-"_

"You were watching over me. I still have yet to hear the reason behind that. And yet the Cons still came knocking at your back bumper."

 _"Huh. It's just different."_ Ironhide wasn't telling me something. That part was certain. But why wasn't he?

"You're hiding something from me. You yell at me for keeping things bottled up, but you can?" The question wasn't supposed to come out brash and rude, but it did. Son if a-

"Damnit Kyrie!" Ironhide bellowed, as my heart fell into my stomach. "You just don't understand-"

"No, you don't understand." He had started it. "I have been kept in the dark about everything since my parents disappeared in Mission City. I was given everything and more by the government and Lennox, including an apparently alien truck. Suddenly I'm a part of an alien war, learning about what happened, but my parents still manage to be a secret. I'm done with the lies!" my right hand went to my head, holding my forehead in it. Tears were threating to spill and my Tylenol was wearing off.

Without a warning, the truck came to a screeching halt in the middle of the highway, the seatbelt catching me before I could be thrown through the windshield. Cars swerved around us and yelled colorful profanities, as the driver's side door swung open. Jazz had hit his breaks as well, and backed up in front of Ironhide.

 _"What's da' deal?"_ he questioned. Ironhide must have shut off the com to Jazz before we had our argument. He was confused.

 _"If you think I'm such a pain in the aft, you can walk to the base. Get out!"_

I didn't even try to say no. I wanted out as well. With my bag in my hand, I left the truck ungracefully, landing on my bad ankle with a wince. Before I could say something, Ironhide's tires screeched as he tore off down the road, leaving me and a confused Jazz standing on a busy highway. A busy highway… SHIT. My legs carried me to Jazz, who opened the door for me to dive into. My bag was angrily tossed into the backseat, as I started to wipe away the tears that managed to escape. He took off after Ironhide, eventually catching back up, but not before the questions started.

 _"What'd ya do ta' piss off Ironhide?"_

My eyes settled on the dash, "Can we just not talk about it?" I was fuming now. The afthole had thrown me out on a busy highway and tore off without me. If Jazz hadn't been here, I could have been hit and killed. Worse, the Cons could have been following along behind and took me. I thought rolling my ankle was the last time he was going to let me get hurt? So much for the bot caring about me in any way, shape or form. He was the one who asked for me to let it all out. I'm sorry if it offended him that I was angry. I had the right to be, even if it wasn't something he wanted to hear.

 _"If dats' what ya' want."_

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The last three hours on the road were painful. There was no talking between the three of us. No games, no stopping, no laughter. Ironhide just kept the lead at a steady 210 miles an hour on the freeway, before going about 60 on a dirt road. However, I enjoyed the silence. My Tylenol was long gone, and my body and my ankle were beginning to ache. Jazz must have noticed, as the seats where becoming more and more comfortable.

Somewhere in my thoughts, the anger went to fear, then to sadness, then to embarrassment. I had acted like a spoiled little kid who was set on getting a candy bar that her mom had said no to. My guilt was too much. I needed to say sorry before we got to the military base. If I didn't now, I might not get another chance.

I looked to the truck, settling my eyes on the Dory Band-Aid on the tailgate. He must have cared. He had let me keep that Band-Aid on him… and I had never noticed that the Autobot symbol was decaled on the tailgate.

"Jazz, can Ironhide hear me?" I set my hand on the wheel, gripping it tightly. Well, here we go…

 _"Naw, he's still got the com blocked. Let me try to git im'."_

Jazz flashed his lights at Ironhide. He had to see that, as we were right behind him. There was silence, as Jazz must have been trying to talk to Ironhide privately. After about a minute more of the awkward silence, I could hear Ironhide's growl on the other end.

Here goes nothing. "Look. I'm sorry I acted like that. I know you answered almost every question I asked. I shouldn't have been brash with you. I'm sorry." My heart skipped another beat. Jazz chuckled under his breath, as the seat belt tightened a bit. He was trying to make me feel better. My left hand went to the belt, as I squeezed it against my chest and mumbled a thank you.

After another minute of silence, Ironhide's voice broke through. _"Stop it with the sorry, already. You had a reason to be mad. I'm sorry I threw you out on the highway. I broke my promise to keep you safe."_

Safe. I _was_ safe with him, huh? My frown pulled up into a small smile. "Now look who's always saying sorry!"

Another few cuss words. _"Don't expect it again."_

"Sure, whatever you say, _guardian_."

The base seemed to come out of nowhere. Then again, we were in the middle of nowhere. The closer we got, the more nervous I became. Jazz sensed it as he chuckled and tightened the seatbelt again.

"So this is your way of making me feel better?" It was just a question. The small gesture made me feel safe. Ironhide did the same thing when I was weary. I had only been with Jazz for an hour, and I kind of missed being with Ironhide. Don't take it the wrong way, it's just I was used to his antics and the cab had a little more room to stretch out in. Jazz was a complete gentleman to me, and I loved him for it. But, he just wasn't Ironhide.

 _"It is. Can't ex'actly hold ya' hand or give ya' a hug in vehicle form. Don't tell me ya' in that mood again."_

"Quit scanning me! That's not why I was- ugh. Whatever and I don't want you to hold my hand or hug me." the rant ended in laughter from everyone, even old grumpy pants. My ankle popped, and I let out a sigh. The swelling had finally stopped and now it was starting to turn a lighter shade of purple. "So is everyone there?"

 _"Everyone? Buy that you mean-"_ Both mechs questioned, as they flashed their lights about two miles from the entrance. Must have wanted the gate people to know they were friendly. That's good.

"All the Autobots." I swallowed, setting my hands on my lap. I was just getting used to these two, and was about to meet three more. Maybe two, if Bumblebee wasn't there.

 _"Yes, even Bumblebee is there. Lennox is there along with Sam."_

"Oh." Was all that followed. "When we get there, can I stay close to you, Ironhide?"

He seemed to be searching for my emotion through the com-link. _"All right. But they are harmless. Well, all but maybe Ratchet."_

Ratchet was the Chief Medical Officer. Yeah. I could see him being a butt. The way Jazz and Ironhide described him, he was a worry wort mixed with pain in the ass. If Ironhide and Jazz scanned me fifty thousand times, he would probably do ten times that… He would have a field day scanning me and seeing all my cuts, bruises and my ankle…

"Thank you."

 _"I'm your guardian, remember. That's what I'm here for. Supposedly."_ I was going to yell that he was being mushy, but the last word said it all.

What a sarcastic sentient alien robot (sorry mech) truck from the planet Cybertron.

* * *

 **I said it was going to be shorter. The next chapter is currently in the works. It is significantly longer. So it will probably have to be spilt into two. We will see when I get there.**

 **Please continue to read a review and follow if you wish. It makes me want to write more when I see people wanting to read it. Thank you to all of you who have reviewed thus far. I appreciate it!**

 **Also, please let me know if something doesn't look right. Spell check does not catch correctly spelled words used in the wrong context. Fragments may or may not count, as we people do like to talk in fragments ;)**

 **Yuuki :)**


	5. More Than Meets the Eye (Or Something)

**Hello, hello!**

 **Sorry it took so long… and those who recently reviewed… THANK YOU! It lit a fire under my butt! I didn't abandon this story! :) You have heard my life's story over the last four chapters… But it's up! Chapter 5, whoop whoop! Enjoy :)**

 **As always, I do not own anything about Transformers including characters, plot lines, etc.**

 **I do own Kyrie and Sean! No takies! Luna belongs to a bestie of mine. Please don't take her either…**

 **ALL RIGHT! Here we go! Roll out!**

* * *

Chapter 5: More Than Meets the Eye (Or Something Like That…)

I was more than a nervous wreak, if there was such a thing. In a few minutes, I would have to answer to three more AUTOBOTS and a probably mad and worried Lennox WHO was now aware I knew about his little secret life. What did I do in my life to deserve giant mechanical beings and a grumpy Lennox? But, it couldn't be worse than meeting Ironhide first.

With a sigh, I grabbed my phone out of habit. When I felt nervous or scared, I usually texted my best friend since preschool, Luna, or my boyfriend. Right now, bringing Luna into the fray was not an option. How was I supposed to respond to not answering my phone or why I wasn't home? Sure, I could make up an excuse, saying I was on a spur of the moment vacation. I didn't want to lie to my best friend. And truthfully, I still didn't fully understand what was going on at this point. It was best to stay silent for a while. I didn't want to bring her into an intergalactic war with crazy 'bots.

Second, I didn't have a boyfriend since last December when Sean decided to become verbally and physically abusive. He got mad when he saw me talking to another friend (a boy) and totally flipped out, slapping me across the face.

Sean never came back. I got a bizarre phone call the next day, and Sean sounded scared, apologizing and saying he wasn't going to come around me again.

That day that I was slapped, I had ran out to my 'truck', because I didn't know where to go. Now, knowing my 'truck' wasn't a truck at all, I wonder if Ironhide said something to him. He would have clearly knew I didn't feel safe with Sean, and probably saw the whole thing unfold in front of the building (knowing his secret protect Kyrie side). I had stormed out to the 'truck' afraid and hurt… Yeah, it had to have been Ironhide.

"I have another question." We were now about a mile from base, and the gate was coming up fast. I just had to know if it was he. My eyes settled on the truck in front of us, as he let off the gas and fell back behind us. "Ironhide, did you say something to Sean?" I didn't have to explain who he was, as his 'laugh' came through Jazz's speakers.

" _Noooooo. I would never."_ He paused, and the humor from his voice was long gone. _"I did. That boy hit you across the face."_ With that sentence Jazz growled and said something (probably another one of their Cybertronian cuss words), and pulled harder on the seatbelt. _"It is my job to keep you safe. That boy was trouble. So, I may have walked up and had a 'discussion' about treating you right."_

That poor human soul…"U-um thank you?" Case closed. No wonder I never had to deal with crazies. Ironhide was secretly doing that for me. I had a completely new respect for the mech, even if he tossed me out of the truck, sprained my ankle, and left me in the middle of traffic.

 _"We close naw."_ Jazz had turned off his high beams as we pulled up to the gate, Ironhide following behind. _"Just st'y quiet, they know ya' comin' with."_

Jazz didn't have to tell me twice. He pulled up to the gate, rolling down the window so I could see, and be seen. I looked over at the soldier in the booth. He looked like someone I didn't want to mess with, as he was easily six foot and VERY muscular. However, he just glanced me over with green eyes, and looked back at Ironhide before settling his eyes on Jazz.

The solider, whose last name was Grant, handed me an ID with my License photo on it. "You need to wear this at all times, Miss Walsh. It also needs to be visible. And I'm sure you know what Classified is?" the last part came out snarky. Just be quiet, Kyrie…

He was scary. I looked down at the ID with a blush. Jazz's seatbelt tightened around me, and I put my hand to it. Thanks, Jazz. I glanced back up at the man, "Y-Yes, sir."

"All right, go on in." He pushed a button from the console inside the booth opening the gate and looked back at Ironhide. "There're all waiting in Hanger 3."

Here we go. Jazz started into the base, as I looked at my ID. I felt special. Too bad, it wasn't to meet with family here. No, it had to be with a giant Cybertronian named Optimus Prime and his group of what I was beginning to consider crazy Autobots.

Hanger 3 seemed so far away at this point. The base was bustling for it being midnight. Then again, they were getting ready for another go-round with Megatron and his version of 'Gods'. Hands went in to the air with a 'hey' as we passed Humvees and waves of soldiers. It was somewhat hard to miss these two in a base full of green, yellow, and just plain drab colors. Ironhide was a huge ass truck but fit in better than Jazz and his flashy silver paintjob and choice of terrestrial vehicle.

As usual, it was the last building in the back. Aren't there movies that tell you not to go into dark places that are far away from civilization? That and I guess if anyone was going to sneak around, they wouldn't find aliens lounging around on base. They'd be caught in their stupidity trying to jump over the fence first. I stifled a laugh at the thought.

Jazz came to a stop just outside the bay door, which was just beginning to open to welcome us in. Ironhide pulled up next to the driver's side of us and idled.

" _This is where ya git off."_ Jazz opened his driver side door for me, _"They ain't gonna bite. Promise."_

Ironhide does, A LOT. "I'll hold you to that." I gulped, climbing out of the Solstice onto the pavement with my good foot first and standing in front of Ironhide. I was getting used to shifting my weight off my bad ankle. Maybe I should have taken my Tylenol again before we got here. But I had been in a pretty crappy mood after Señor Afthole threw me out on the highway. Ratchet as going to have a field day with me anyway…

I was going to grab my bag, but Jazz shut the door. _"It'll be fine in 'ere. I won't smash it. Not on purpose anyway'."_ He retorted peeling off into the hanger.

"You better not!" came a chuckle as I pinned my ID to my shirt the best I could. My eyes took me to the open hanger. "I go first?" Please say no.

" _I'll be right here next to you, remember?"_ Ironhide snickered, pushing me with his front bumper. _"Now just go already!"_

"Just bite me. You're not the one about to meet mechs WAY taller, sharper, and pokier than you." Pokier? So not a word. Oh well. I playfully slapped his bumper, which got the attention of a few soldiers walking by. They backed up when they saw me smack Ironhide. I guess they had seen his bad side, too. "He's harmless to me, well sorta," came my response and a shrug to the men, who just stared walking faster.

" _Would ya' two stop bickerin' and go al'ready?"_ Jazz called from inside, parking next to a yellow Camaro. Bumblebee…

"You bite me, too, broken English." I put my hands on my hips and laughed, taking a few steps off the pavement and into the bay. Ironhide didn't push me from behind, but didn't leave more than a few inches between him and me.

" _I could-."_ Ironhide recanted, and stopped abruptly behind me when I froze in the middle of the now vehicle circle. _"Do you want me to hit you?"_

"Kyrie! What the hell did you get yourself into this time?" Lennox barked, leaving his post. He had been leaning against an over-done up Semi-Truck with flames. Beside it was a baby poop yellow/green Search and Rescue Hummer. THEY WERE NOT ROBOTS IN DISQUISE IN THE SLIGHTEST!

" _Oh I get why you stopped. Yeah, he's not happy…"_ was all Ironhide could say.

"Me? How about why did you 'give' me a Cybertronian in disguise as a shitty truck?" No way was he going to pin this all on me. Lenox had made his way over to me and was looking me over.

"What's up with the Band-Aids and your ankle?" the angry soldier looked over at Ironhide, "What'd you do?" He grumbled and scratched his head. Shit. Ironhide was going to be chewed out for something I kind of made him do…

"It wasn't him. It was Barricade-" I began to say, but Ironhide wasn't having any of it.

" _No, it wasn't. It was me. I dumped her out on the ground."_ He responded in a humorous way, beginning to transform behind me. I stepped forward towards Lennox out of habit. The other vehicles in the circle began to follow suit. I was too busy with them and their transformations to provide input to Ironhide's aid, and all but one of the giants were starting to argue about me and my safety.

I had already met and seen Jazz, but I was now sure he was the smallest of the bots at about 13 feet. Bumblebee was beside him and still short, but was taller than the Lieutenant at maybe 17 feet. He was yellow and black, just like a bee. Beside the Camaro was what I would assume was Ratchet with his hideous paintjob. The 'Search and Rescue, on his vehicle form gave it away. He probably stood at about 24 feet, with Ironhide with maybe two more inches on him. Finally, my eyes settled on who I could conclude as Optimus Prime. He was the tallest of the Autobots at 28 feet, which only seemed right since he was the leader. He had been the semi that Lennox had leaned on. He had a flame paintjob, with a darker metallic blue as the base.

Optimus's optics settled on me when I looked his way. My posture stiffed, and behind me I could make out Lennox letting out a laugh. Slowly, I tried to make my way behind Ironhide's foot, but I was immediately scooped up without my permission. I squeaked and was about to jump in my fight or flight response, before the other hand kept me from doing so.

"I'm not going to hurt you like Ironaft over there. Now just stay still so I can see the damage." Ratchet commanded, as he seemed to be examining me from his palm. No, I wanted down. I was scared as hell. He could look me over when I had some real sleep and a few more Tylenol.

"Put me down." Was all I could say. He hadn't asked my permission to tear me from the floor, or to examine me. I was scared as hell and beginning to ache and just wanted to crawl back to Ironhide. Funny how I was kind of attached to him after everything he had done…

My guardian was getting angry, "Put her down Ratchet. She's not exactly okay with everything yet." He grumbled and took a small (it was still rather large to me) step closer to us, reaching out a hand. "Better yet, give her to me."

Another hand to sit in like a specimen or artifact on display: no. "Just put me down." I pleaded again, shifting my weight when Ratchet would move his arm a bit. My hands had been planted on both sides of me to steady myself, with my legs folded under me.

"Why should I? Maybe you're the reason why she is scared in the first-"

Enough… "PUT ME DOWN DAMNIT!" The volume in my voice was enough to quiet the bickering room, and everyone stopped and looked to me.

Optimus shook his head in agreement, "Although she is very small and much younger than we, Kyrie isn't a sparkling. Put her down Ratchet."

Without a verbal argument (maybe a murmur under his breath), Ratchet placed his hand on the ground. In seconds, I was out of his hand, over, and behind Lennox's back. I wasn't coming out now. A headache was forming in my temple.

Lennox sighed and glanced back at me, before looking to Prime. "I'll take her and settle her down. Optimus, you can take the conversation from here?" he then looked to Ironhide, pointing his index finger at him. "And don't think you are out of the woods for what you did."

"He's fi-" it was futile to argue with Lennox.

"Of course, Lennox." Optimus nodded, and looked over at me. "Kyrie, please get some rest. You have been through enough in the last day and a half. We can speak about this in the morning when you feel better about being around us."

A forced nod followed his words, as I let out a sigh. I didn't notice I was holding my breath. "Thank you."

"Good night, Kyrie."

The smallest smile pulled at my lips at his voice and tone. "Night."

* * *

 **Still one of my shorter chapters, but it still made me happy! As always, R and R, as I want to know what's going on in your minds, or if I totally messed up (Hahaha)! Next Chapter will be up soon! PROMISE this time.**

 **Also, please let me know if something doesn't look right. Spell check does not catch correctly spelled words used in the wrong context. Fragments may or may not count, as we people do like to talk in fragments ;)**

 **Yuuki :)**


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